The College Fed Challenge is a competition designed to bring real-world economics into the classroom. Teams play the role of monetary policymakers by analyzing economic conditions and recommending a course for monetary policy. On December 1 in the final rounds of the national competition held at the Federal Reserve Board in Washington, DC, the team sponsored by the Rutgers Economics Department defeated teams from Dartmouth, Princeton, University of Chicago, and Appalachian State to win the National Fed Challenge.

Earlier this fall the team competed against teams from 33 schools in a preliminary round of competition and, after winning, advanced to the regional semi-finals. The regional competition featured teams from 9 schools in the metro New York area. The Rutgers New Brunswick team won the regional finals where they faced off against teams from Columbia University and Mercy College. In a tension filled final round the RU team was awarded first place. The team then advanced to the competition in Washington, DC, where they met Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen and competed against schools from four other Federal Reserve Districts.